Ralph Izard

Ralph Izard (23 January 1741-30 May 1804) was a US Senator from South Carolina from 4 March 1789 to 4 March 1795, preceding Jacob Read. He was a member of the Federalist Party.

Biography
Ralph Izard was born in Charleston, South Carolina in 1741, and he spent most of his childhood and youth studying in England. In 1776, he moved to Paris, France, and, that same year, the Continental Congress appointed him as its ambassador to Tuscany. He was recalled in 1779, and he pledged his large estate to the construction of warships during the American Revolutionary War. In 1782 and 1783, Izard was a member of the Continental Congress, and, in 1788, he was elected to the first US Senate. He left office in 1795, and he died in 1804.